Apotheosis
by Aether of the Light
Summary: Apotheosis - The elevation of a person to the rank of a god. After defeating Bojack, Gohan contemplates the responsibility left to him by his father and makes a decision that will change the world and his life, forever. Gohan/Videl
1. Chapter 1: Decisions

**Apotheosis**

**By:** _Aether of the Light_

Summary: Apotheosis (noun) - the elevation of a person to the rank of a god. After defeating Bojack, Gohan contemplates the responsibility left to him by his father and makes a decision that will change the world and his life, forever.

Rating: Teen

Disclaimer: Dragon Ball Z and all associated content and characters are the property of their respective owners. The only claim I hold are the characters that I create. No profit is being made from this work of fiction.

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A/N: Hello everyone. I'm making my grand debut to fanfiction with this work that suddenly came to me while I was riding a plane, thousands of feet up into the air. I have no idea how long it is eventually going to be, especially since this is my first work. I hope you all enjoy, and if there is anyone interested in beta reading for me, it would be much appreciated. Enough with this author note, let's get started.

**Chapter One**

Decisions

Son Gohan stared outside his window at the setting summer sun. An unreadable expression covered his face as he observed the last streaks of light disappear under the horizon. The rest of the Z Fighters had long since been moved out of his room and returned to their own, leaving Gohan in the hospital bed alone with his mother.

Turning his head, Gohan glanced down to his mother. She had fallen asleep at his bedside with her head resting beside Gohan's right thigh after deflecting Gohan's attempts to send her back the Son residence. She whimpered lightly in her sleep as Gohan felt her squeeze his hand a bit, an unconscious confirmation that her son was still by her side.

The nightmares had slowly died down for both remaining members of the Son family over the past couple of months. The death of Goku had taken its toll, both mentally and physically on Chi-Chi and Gohan. Gohan was beginning to grow worried. He knew that his mother was strong in will and that she would pull out of the family crisis all the better. He was more worried about final surprise his father had left to the world.

Gohan could feel the new ki signature growing within his mother's womb. He knew the effects depression and unhealthy habits could have on an unborn child. He wondered briefly when his mother would tell him about her pregnancy. He knew for a fact that she must have known about it, especially since she was at least several months pregnant.

Turning his head back to the now dark sky, Gohan reflected on the events of the past day. _'Father,'_ he thought idly as he observed the constellations in the sky. _'Is this what you went through protecting the Earth?'_ It had only been a couple of months since the Cell Games and already another threat had appeared, just as powerful as the monster Cell.

Gohan released a soft sigh as he closed his eyes. _'What if someone even more powerful comes and threatens the Earth? I won't be able to stop them. Not like this. Not with the life mom is making me live.' _Opening his eyes, Gohan turned his gaze to his mother. _'I know mom isn't going to like it. It's going to shatter her dream of me becoming a scholar. But fighting is in my blood, the blood of a Saiyan.'_

'_Besides,'_ he thought to himself. _'Who else is going to protect the Earth? With my father gone, I'm the most powerful person on the planet. Piccolo is great and all, but I don't think he doesn't have the power that I do. And now that Vegeta is back to his normal self, he'd rather train and try to surpass me than protect others. Plus his arrogance and pride as the Prince of Saiyans won't allow him to 'lower himself' to my standards and protect the people of Earth,'_ he thought as half a smile adorned his face.

"What are you smiling at young man?" a voice asked to his side.

Gohan shook his head to rid himself of his stupor and smiled down at his mother. "Nothing mom. Just thinking," he replied.

Stretching her arms, Chi-Chi let a brief yawn loose before turning her gaze back to her son. "No, it's not nothing. I know that look on your face Son Gohan, and that usually means that you're thinking deeply about something. Now tell me, what's on your mind son?"

"My responsibility," Gohan answered as he rubbed the back of his head, trying his best to dodge his mother's advances and avoid the inevitable conversation.

"What responsibility?" Chi-Chi questioned. "You've got your studying to do at home along with your homework, and you've got your chores around the household."

"No, not that mom," Gohan said as he let go a soft sigh of defeat. "I mean the responsibility dad left me when he died. Protecting the Earth." Gohan looked his mother in the eyes and saw them narrow slightly in anger.

"Son Gohan, I thought we already had this conversation. No more training. After that monster Cell was defeated you were to go back to your studies and leave the fighting to everyone else," Chi-Chi said in a stern voice as she crossed her arms and leveled a glare at Gohan. "That was our agreement."

"Mom, we never had an agree-"

"I don't care Son Gohan," Chi-Chi cut off. "You are going to become a scholar, just like your father and I agreed. No more training, and definitely no more fighting. Understand young man?"

"But mom, fighting is in my blood," Gohan argued as he sat up in his bed, trying to get eye level with his mother. "Besides, dad never agreed to that. He wanted me to train also," he said as his gave his mother a defiant stare. "This is what I want to do."

Chi-Chi's gaze softened slightly. "What about Piccolo, or Krillen, or Tien? Why can't they protect the Earth? And what about Vegeta?" Chi-Chi argued back, trying to find something to prevent her son from becoming the warrior deep down she knew he was destined to be.

Gohan sighed lightly as he heard the desperate tone in his mother's voice. "Mom, you know as much as I do that even though Piccolo and the rest of the guys are great, they're not as powerful as I am," Gohan said trying to get her to understand his side. "As for Vegeta, you should know better than that. Vegeta has too much pride in him to do what is best for the Earth."

"Please mom," he pleaded as tears began to fill Chi-Chi's eyes. Gohan placed both his hands on his mother's shoulders. "This is what I want. This is what I'm destined to do. Just like dad."

With that, the dam broke as Chi-Chi let go a heart wrenching sob and enveloped her son in a crushing hug. "Oh, my baby. My poor boy," Chi-Chi cried into Gohan's hospital gown. "Your growing up too fast. You shouldn't have to do this."

Wrapping his arms around his mother, Gohan rested his head in the crook of her neck. "I know mom. But I have to do this. For dad."

Instead of answering, Chi-Chi let loose another heart wrenching sob as she squeezed Gohan even harder.

"Everything is going to be okay mom. I promise.

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Around a half hour later, Chi-Chi had finally recovered from her emotional breakdown and was now sitting back in her chair at Gohan's bedside, peacefully reading a book. Her eyes were slightly swollen and dried tears still covered her cheeks. Gohan noticed that one of her arms was protectively wrapped around her stomach, while the other held the book up.

"How is it?" Gohan asked suddenly, making an attempt to break the awkward silence that had descended upon the room.

"What?" Chi-Chi asked as she removed her hand from her stomach and looked up at Gohan.

"The baby," he responded as Chi-Chi's eyes widened slightly in shock. "How is the baby?"

"H-how d-did you know?" she stuttered out, obviously surprised that her son knew she was pregnant. "How did you know I was pregnant?" she asked again, this time in a stronger tone.

Gohan smiled at his mother. "I can sense ki mom. Remember?" he asked rhetorically. "I wasn't so sure of it before, because the baby's ki signature was so weak. But now I can see it clear as day."

"Gohan, I'm sorry I didn't-"

"No mom," he said cutting her off. "It's ok. I understand." Gohan covered his mother's hand with his own. "You didn't want me to worry."

Chi-Chi smiled at her sons understanding gaze and placed the book down on her lap. Taking her free hand, she caressed her stomach and looked down.

"So how is he?" Gohan asked again, this time with a bigger smile.

Chi-Chi sent Gohan a mock glare. "What makes you so sure it's a he?"

Gohan's smile widened even further as he got a mischief glint in his eyes. "Remember? I can sense his ki. And since he's so strong already, it's obvious it has to be a guy."

Gohan stared at his mother for a few seconds with the same smile before Chi-Chi's eyes narrowed in anger and she sent her son her patented death glare. "Son Gohan! How many times have I told you to be far to the ladies?" she yelled as she stood quickly from her chair, knocking her book onto the floor.

Gohan's smile disappeared as he eyes started looking around nervously, trying to find some way to get away from his enraged mother. "Mom," he said nervously looking back and forth. "I was just kidding. You know I didn't mean it like that."

"I thought I raised you better young man!" she ranted, clearly ignoring Gohan. "I always taught you to be respectful to everyone, even if they aren't as strong as you. How do you expect to find yourself a nice young lady to marry so I can have grandchildren, if you go around with this attitude that you are superior just because you are a man?"

"Mom," Gohan whined. "I was just kidding. Besides I'm too young to get married."

"That doesn't matter young man. As soon as we get home, you're grounded until you are taught some manners. I knew I shouldn't have let you go off with that man Vegeta. It's obvious he's corrupted you…" Chi-Chi said as she sat down and continued her rant.

"_Great,"_ Gohan thought to himself as he crossed his arms in annoyance. _"I'm grounded again." _Looking outside, Gohan observed the stars as they glistened in the night sky, ignoring his mothers continued ranting in the background.

"Are you even listening to me young man!"

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A/N: There we go. The first chapter of Apotheosis. Hope you all enjoyed. I'm not sure how often I'll be getting chapters out as I'm a college student, and as much as I love typing, my studies come first. But I'll do my best to get a new chapter out ASAP.

Remember, I need a beta if anyone is interested.

And reviews are what give writers encouragement to continue writing!


	2. Chapter 2: Loss

**Apotheosis**

**By:** _Aether of the Light_

Summary: Apotheosis (noun) - the elevation of a person to the rank of a god. After defeating Bojack, Gohan contemplates the responsibility left to him by his father and makes a decision that will change the world and his life, forever.

Rating: Teen

Disclaimer: Dragon Ball Z and all associated content and characters are the property of their respective owners. The only claim I hold are the characters that I create. No profit is being made from this work of fiction.

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A/N: Hey all. Here's the second chapter of Apotheosis. Sorry it took a while. I just wanted to finish planning the first story arc before I continued. I think you're going to like it. I got a pretty original idea over dinner one night and I pretty much scrapped what I was originally planning for the first villain of the fic. I also updated Chapter One with a few corrections here and there and I fixed a pretty embarrassing problem where I accidently put in some HTML code into the fic. I guess that's what I get for roleplaying in forums all the time.

For those of you who don't know, Bojack was the main villain in Dragon Ball Z: Bojack Unbound. It takes place in between episodes 192 and 193. Anyhow! Without further ado, here is Chapter Two.

**Chapter Two**

Loss

Gohan breathed in the fresh air of the new day as a gentle breeze blew into his room. Chi-Chi had finally left his bedside earlier that morning after Gohan spent a half hour convincing her that he was ok and that it was safe to return to Mount Paozu and check on the Son Residence. But not after Chi-Chi made her son swear that he wouldn't attempt to leave the hospital.

'_Well,'_ Gohan thought to himself as he swung his legs over the side of the bed. _'I'll just be leaving my bed. And I'll still be inside the hospital... Or at least on hospital grounds.'_

Hoping off of the bed, Gohan made sure the back of his hospital gown was secure before leaving his room. Closing the door behind him, he paused and looked around the hallway. _'Where to go,'_ he thought idly to himself as he turned his head to look up and down the hallway. Shrugging his shoulders, Gohan started walking in a random direction.

'_I wonder what I'm going to do once I finally get out of here,'_ Gohan thought as he kept walking down the hallway. His eyes were firmly on the ground in front of him. _'Mom already knows that I need to train. The question is how I'm going to do it. I know that Piccolo can train me mentally. You can always learn something new from Piccolo,'_ Gohan thought as a smile graced his face. _'Vegeta can help me with my fighting technique. He used to always want to spar, and now that he more or less seems back to normal, maybe he will be up for a spar every once in a while.'_

Gohan rounded the corner and let out a startled gasp as his body collided into another. He was caught so off guard by the sudden collision that he fell forward and lost his balance. Instinctively putting out his hands, he prevented himself from falling further and crushing the stranger.

"I'm so sorry," he said quickly as he looked down at the girl he had knocked into and almost fallen on. He froze as his eyes caught sight of the beautiful blue orbs that were her eyes. _'Wait, beautiful?'_

Scrambling of the young girl, Gohan stood and offered her a hand only to be promptly rejected as she sat up and leaned against the wall. The girl then brought her knees to her chest and hugged them tightly. Worry began to set into Gohan's stomach as he started to think that he had hurt her. He started to apologize again only to stop suddenly as she finally spoke softly.

"I-It's alright," she said as she rubbed at her eyes, as if trying to wipe something away. It was then that Gohan noticed that the she was crying. Worried that he had hurt her, Gohan walked forward and kneeled at her side.

"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to hurt you. Are you alright?" he asked nervously as he quickly checked her over for injury with his eyes. The girl continued to wipe at her tears and if possible, pulled her knees closer to her chest.

"I-I'm ok, it's not you," she said sniffing.

"Oh," he said lamely. Gohan gave the girl a confused look and rubbed the back of his head. _'Oh man. I don't know what to do. Fighting evil villains I can do, but helping crying teenage girls, I'm terrible at. Maybe I should apologize again. I probably did hurt her but she just doesn't want to admit it.'_

"I'm sorry," he said again as he looked down at the floor. "I should have been paying attention to where I was go-"

He stopped suddenly as he heard a strange, almost angelic sound. Looking up, Gohan saw that the girl was no longer crying openly, but now covering her mouth trying to suppress a giggle. "What?" he asked incredulously. Gohan turned his head and tried to find whatever was making the girl laugh.

She smiled at Gohan and shook her head. "Nothing," she said. "You just apologize too much."

"I'm sorry," he said again looking down. A smile graced his face as the girl giggled once again, this time without any restraint. Glancing back up at the girl, Gohan offered his hand. "My name is Gohan. Son Gohan."

Her smile widened as she gave a surprisingly firm shake. "My name is Videl Satan."

'_Videl Satan… Why does that sound so familiar?'_ Gohan thought as he smiled at the girl. "It's a pleasure to meet you Ms. Satan."

"Please, call me Videl."

Gohan nodded and continued to smile. "Alright then, pleased to meet you Videl."

Videl smiled brightly at Gohan. "Nice to meet you too."

The two teenagers continued to look and smile at each other as several people walked by and gaze them a weird look. As the two finally broke eye contact, they looked down and noticed for the first time that they were still holding hands. Blushing furiously, they both quickly let go of each other's hand and looked away.

Gohan suddenly found the floor extremely interesting as Videl turned her head back to chance a look at Gohan. "Uhm… You might want to stand up," she said suddenly.

Looking up, Gohan gave her a confused look. "What?"

"I said you might want to stand up. Your hospital gown is starting to fall off."

Gohan started to blush even more and could feel his ears heating up in embarrassment. Bracing his hands on the floor, Gohan quickly stood up from the ground and adjusted his gown. By the time he was finished, Videl was already up off of the ground. She was just a bit shorter than Gohan and judging by her features, she was about the same age as well.

"So, what are you here for?" Videl asked curiously.

Gohan raised his eyebrows questioningly as he looked at Videl.

Seeing that he didn't understand what she was talking about, Videl gestured to his clothing. "You're wearing one of the hospital gowns which means you must be staying here."

"Oh!" Gohan exclaimed as he rubbed the back of his head sheepishly. "I was… Uhm… In a fight… And I got hurt," he said as he tried and failed to not sound suspicious.

"A fight?" Videl asked with a raised eyebrow. "What kind of fight?" she asked suspiciously.

Gohan looked at Videl nervously as he started to sweat a little. "What do you mean 'What kind of fight?'"

"Well you said you were in a fight," Videl said as she leveled Gohan with a suspiciously stare. "But I don't see any cuts or bruises on you."

Gohan tried to disarm Videl's suspicions by giving her a wide smile and rubbing the back of his head. "Well, I guess I must heal pretty quickly. Plus the other guy looks a lot worse."

"So you do martial arts?"

"Yeah," Gohan said quickly as he tried to think of an excuse to diver the attention away from him. "So what are you doing here?" he asked quickly before Videl could say anything else.

Videl suddenly stiffened and looked down at the floor. The smile on Gohan's face was now replaced with a look of concern as he moved forward and touched Videl's shoulder lightly. "Videl?"

Videl looked up at Gohan with sorrow as tears filled her eyes once again. "It's my mom," she said softly. Gohan could hear the despair in her voice and immediately knew what was happening. He knew what she was feeling all too well.

"What's wrong?" he asked softly as he placed a comforting hand on her shoulder. Videl stiffened again at the contact, but after several moments she graciously accepted the comfort.

"She's sick," Videl explained through tears. "Really sick and she's not getting better. The doctors don't know what's wrong and they say they can't do anything to help her. She's in so much pain and is always clutching at her heart." Videl suddenly let out a heart wrenching sob as she flung her arms around Gohan and hugged him, searching for whatever comfort he could give.

Startled by the sudden hug, Gohan stood awkwardly for a moment before wrapping his arms around Videl in comfort. Silently he hushed her and muttered words of comfort. "It's going to be ok Videl. Come on, let's take a walk."

With one hand around her arms for comfort, Gohan silently led Videl outside the hospital to a small bench underneath a tree. They sat together for several moments as Videl cried in Gohan's arms. Despite the awkward start, Gohan had quickly grown comfortable around her and continued to loan his support.

"It's going to be alright Videl," he hushed her gently.

"No it's not," Videl said suddenly. Gohan could hear the anger in her voice as she broke from his embrace and stood up from the bench. She leveled a glare at Gohan as her sorrow turned to anger. "It's not going to be alright! The doctors already said she was dying from the heart disease and since it's new, there's nothing they can do about it!"

Gohan froze in his seat as the words left Videl's mouth. "Did you say it's a new heart disease?" he asked as an idea formed in his mind.

"Yes," Videl said, surprised slightly by Gohan's sudden interest.

"As in the new one that just broke out around a year ago?" Gohan stood up from the bench and stared at Videl.

"That's what the doctors said. They still haven't developed a cure for it," Videl said.

Gohan suddenly moved past Videl and moved briskly towards the hospital.

"Gohan?" Videl inquired as he moved past her. She walked behind him, struggling to keep up. "Gohan? What's wrong?"

"Nothing's wrong," he said over his shoulder as he entered the hospital. "In matter of fact, I think everything might be ok."

"What do you mean?" Videl asked as they both turned the corner where they met.

Gohan suddenly stopped and looked at Videl. With a hopeful smile he said, "I have something that may help your mom. I just need to go to a friend's house to get it," he said as he put both his hands on her shoulders. "Go to your mom's room. I'll be back soon with the medicine."

"A-alright," Videl stammered as she tried her best not to get her hopes up. _'What if he's lying?_' She stayed still as she watched Gohan turn around and walk away before disappearing behind another corner.

Gohan moved swiftly through the hallways before stopping in his own room. After hastily getting out of his hospital gown, he picked up the battered gi that was laying folded on the stand beside his table. After putting on the torn gi, he walked to the window and opened it. _'I hope I make it in time,'_ Gohan thought as he jumped out the window and flew out into the sky.

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Bulma Briefs was enjoying the silence of the day. Her mother and father had decided to take a sudden impromptu vacation, leaving her manage Capsule Corporation on her own for the next two weeks. And since it was the weekend, the small staff at the famed corporation was not around, leaving her alone with her young son Trunks and Vegeta. The rare silence was certainly something to enjoy as she lay in the hammock of the backyard, enjoying a drink.

"Bulma!"

Sitting up quickly with a startled expression, Bulma spilled the contents of her drink all over her shorts and tank top. "Son Gohan!" she exclaimed in anger, "What do you think you're doing yelling like that? You almost gave me a heart attack for Kami's sake! Next time give me a warning."

"I'm sorry Bulma, I'm just in a rush," he said breathing heavily.

"Hey, aren't you supposed to still be in the hospital young man. I could have sworn Chi-Chi told me you were going to be in there one more night," she admonished putting her hands on her hips.

"I know Bulma. I just need to get something really fast then I'll head back to the hospital first thing."

"Alright then kid, what do you need?" she asked as she turned around and walked into Capsule Corp.

"Remember that medicine that Mirai Trunks brought for my dad?" Gohan asked quickly as he followed her inside.

"Yeah, I've got whatever doses were left for it so I could study the medicine in the future. Why?" she asked walking into her lab.

"Is there enough for one more person?" Gohan tried his best not to sound rude or impatient, but he knew time was against him.

"Yeah, there should-"

"Can I have it please?" he asked quickly.

"Sure," she said, catching on to his impatient posture. "It's over their on the shelf." Bulma gestured behind her back. "Capsule 26 I believe."

"Thank you," Gohan said quickly as he walked as fast as he could to the other side of the room. Scanning over the shelves briefly, Gohan picked up the capsule.

"Thanks again Bulma! I owe you!" he said as he ran out the door outside. Distantly he heard Bulma welcome him, but he paid her no heed as he moved outside.

"What are you doing here brat?"

Gohan stopped and looked over his shoulder to see Vegeta leaning against the doorway. "Nothing, I just needed to get something for the hospital. Sorry, but I don't have time to talk Vegeta." Taking one last look at the angry, put out look on Vegeta's face, Gohan continued outdoors.

"I don't think so brat. Don't think you can just waltz in here without sparing me and leave. I want to see how far you've come," Vegeta yelled as he followed Gohan outside.

"Seriously Vegeta, I don't have time for a spar. I need to get back to the hospital as fast as I can."

Vegeta snarled as he walked over to Gohan. Using what little height he had, he tried to intimidate Gohan into submission. "I don't think so brat. I want my match." Vegeta moved to grab Gohan by the wrist but was suddenly blinded by a bright golden light as Gohan ascended into a Super Saiyan and took off into the sky.

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Gohan rocketed through the skies above West City. His aura flared wildly around him as he flew as fast as he could to the hospital. He'd involuntarily ascended into a Super Saiyan as he moved with all haste.

The only thoughts going through his mind was that of the girl Videl and the pain she seemed to be in at the prospect of her mother's death. _'I can't let it happen,' _he thought to himself as he flew through a dense cloud. _'If I have the power or means to save someone, I need to do it. No matter what.'_

Gohan could see the structure in the distance as he approached it. When he finally arrived, he flew the window and stumbled into a landing. He quickly descended and took a quick look around; his eyes fell on a stunned nurse who was clutching a notepad to her chest in shock at the sight of a young teenager flying through a window and changing hair color in a matter of moments.

"Where is Ms. Satan's room?" Gohan asked quickly as he moved towards the door.

The sudden, random question seemed to snap the nurse out of her shock. "Room 243 on the floor below us."

As soon as the words were out of her mouth, Gohan was running out the door and heading towards the nearest stairwell. After jumping down the landing and flinging open the door to the hallway, Gohan looked left and right, trying his best to find the room. _'243. 243._ _Where in Dende's name is 243?'_

Gohan stopped suddenly as he saw nurses and doctors running towards a door in commotion. A shrill tone sounded in the background. _'Oh no,' _Gohan thought as he saw the numbers above the door. _'243.'_

Gohan walked slowly with a sense of foreboding towards the door. He stopped outside and gazed in to see Videl sobbing over the body of her mother as Hercule Satan wrapped his arms around her, trying to comfort her. In the back of his mind, Gohan realized where he recognized Videl's name and made the connection that she was Hercule Satan's daughter.

Gohan's heart constricted as he saw Videl cry and then broke as she looked up and out the door towards Gohan. _'I'm too late,'_ he thought as his eyes started to well over. _Another person has died because I wasn't fast enough. First my father, and now Videl's mother. Only this time, Videl is going to suffer for it.'_

Putting his head down in shame, Gohan turned around and walked away.

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A/N: And there's the second chapter of Apotheosis. The next chapter will occur a little over two years in the future and will kick off the first main story arc of the fic. As to what will happen, you'll just have to wait and see.

Remember, reviews are a form of encouragement to continue writing! If you have any ideas, questions, comments, or concerns, feel free to ask.

Reviewer Responses:

**Mirai Gensao –** Thank you for pointing out the grammar error. I must have missed it when I was looking it over in Microsoft Word. I completely agree with you in regards to Gohan's character getting shafted. He's my favorite character in the series and he totally did not deserve the way Akira Toriyama treated him after the Cell Saga.

**MBrook21 –** I still don't know what I'm going to do about Saiyaman. But I can tell you that I find him horribly pathetic. So you can rest easy knowing that there will be no Saiyaman, goofy costumes, bucket heads, Ginyu-like poses, or stupid voices.

**Kyprioths crow –** Bojack is the main villain in the Dragon Ball Z movie Bojack Unbound.


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